Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum injured, but feels OK afterward

SAN FRANCISCO -- Tim Lincecum and the Giants weathered a frightful scare at AT&T Park on Friday night when the pitcher was drilled in the leg by a line drive, but X-rays were negative and it's possible Lincecum won't even have to miss his first regular season start.

Lincecum suffered a left knee contusion when he was struck by a Daric Barton liner in the fourth inning of the Bay Bridge Series game against the A's, a 4-1 San Francisco loss.

Barton's shot up the middle caught Lincecum in an awkward position as he was falling off the mound, and after catcher Buster Posey played the carom and threw to first base to get the out, Lincecum limped in extreme pain between the mound and first base, then collapsed to the turf. He had to be helped off the field by team trainers.

San Francisco Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum grimaces in pain after being hit by a ball off the bat of Oakland Athletic Daric Barton in the fourth inning of game two of the pre-season Bay Bridge Series Friday night March 28, 2014, at AT&T Park in San Francisco, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

But an hour later, Lincecum walked normally to his locker, not even showing a limp, and said he did not believe the injury was serious. He was going to wait, however, to determine whether he would be able to make his first regular-season start Thursday at Arizona.

"We'll see how it feels (Friday)," he said. "The second day is usually when it hurts the most, but right now it feels pretty good."

Lincecum said he never saw the line drive coming but even though it hurt badly after it struck him, he didn't think it was serious because it hit a fleshy area on the inside of the knee. He added he got a "dead leg" sensation after the initial impact, which made the injury look worse than it was.

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"I wasn't too worried, because it hit me in a good spot," he said. "It didn't hit me in the front of the kneecap or anything like that. I just wanted to walk it off, but I just needed some time. It was more shocking than anything. I just needed the blood to get back into it and I was fine."

"The ball didn't ricochet left or right, it came straight back to Buster," manager Bruce Bochy said. "I knew it caught him square. For a while there, you are paralyzed after it hits you. When you've taken foul tips as a catcher, you know what that feels like.

"He's a tough kid. He was walking around here once he got in the dugout. That paralysis seemed to go away."

Lincecum wouldn't wager a guess how much soreness or swelling he might have overnight but noted, "Right now, things are looking positive."

The right-hander threw 72 pitches through his four innings and allowed just one run, a third-inning John Jaso home run. He gave up three hits, walked three and struck out four.

After Hunter Pence gave it a go Thursday, Brandon Belt was the latest No. 2 hitter Friday in place of second baseman Marco Scutaro, who will start the season on the disabled list.

Manager Bruce Bochy said he's leaning toward a platoon in the second spot in the batting order, with Belt taking it against right-handed starters and Pence against left-handers.

Belt welcomes the chance to take a crack at it anytime.

"I like it, there are a lot of opportunities to do some damage in that spot, either creating runs or driving them in yourself," he said. "I've hit third for most of my career, so it's just one ahead of it. There's not that big of a difference."

With rain forecast for the third game of the series, scheduled starter Ryan Vogelsong was scratched and instead will pitch in a minor league game Saturday in Arizona. Edwin Escobar, who's already been optioned to the minors, will make the start for the Giants in Oakland.

Bochy said special assistant Shawon Dunston would serve as his primary video conduit for replay challenges during the regular season.